Container for gasoline



June 19, 1962 A. F. BUSCH CONTAINER FOR GASOLINE Filed Sept. 23, 1959INVENTOR. ARTHUR E BUSCH Y c% ,6

ATT O R N EY rates Unite This invention relates to a container forgasoline.

The experience of running out of gasoline has occurred tomany-motorists. Statistics show that despite the fact that there is aservice station at almost every main crossroads in the country, over amillion motorists run out of gasoline each year. When this happens, itis necessary to get to a service station and get a can of gasoline andtransport it to the stalled car, so that the car can then be operated tothe service station for a fresh supply. As any motorist knows who hashad the experience even i once, it is time-consuming and annoying.

It would be highly desirable to be able to carry a reserve supply ofgasoline in the car, so thatif, for some reason almost alwaysunforeseen, the motorist should run out of gasoline, he would have asupply that could be emptied into the tank which would get him to theclosest service station.

The carrying of extra gasoline in the car, however, is dangerous and isoften forbidden by law. The reason for this is that gasoline is quitevolatile and inflammable and because both the liquid and the gaseousvapors within the container expand appreciably with heat. It is,therefore, impossible to hermetically seal a non-expanding gasolinecontainer because if the car were sitting in the hot sun, the containermay be heated so as to burst or leak, which would present a fire hazard.If the container is constructed with an opening or a vent so that it canbreathe as the gasoline expands and contracts, combustible fumes beemitted. If, for example, the container is kept in the trunk of the car,this breathing may fill the trunk with gasoline vapors which may becomeignited by a spark and set the car on fire.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a gasoline containerwhich avoids the above hazards and is safe to carry in the car.

M These objects of the invention will be better understood in connectionwith the following description and drawings forming a part hereof and inwhich:

FIGURE 1 is an exploded and a perspective view of the gasoline containershowing the cap removed from the bottle and showing the bottle separatedfrom a protective sheath;

FIGURE 2 is a view, partly in section, showing the entire gasolinecontainer within the bottle inside the protective sheath; and

FIGURE 3 is a top view taken along line 3-3 of FIGURE 2 looking in thedirection of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings, the gasoline container comprises a bottle1 formed from a flexible rubber or rubber-like material, or plastic,which is flexible and elastic and which is insoluble in gasoline. By thewords rubber material herein is meant any natural or synthetic rubber orplastic material which is elastic and flexible, which is gasolineinsoluble. Those skilled in the art know how to select such materials. Arubber material suitable for this purpose is the so-called nitrilerubber for-med from polyacrylonitrile.

The bottle is preferably of such dimensions that it holds approximatelyone gallon and for this purpose may be about 14 inches long and 4 /2inches in diameter. The bottle has a bottom 2 and the upper portion isformed in the shape of a cone 3 which terminates in a neck 4. Formed onthe neck 4 are threads 5 so that a cap 6 having similar matching threadson the interior thereof may atent O be screwed on the neck 4 so as toclose the container. A seal 7 is provided within the cap so that whenthe cap is screwed on tight, the rubber bottle is hermetically sealed.

It will be understood that other dimensions may be employed but it isgenerally desirable to have the container big enough so thatapproximately one gallon of gasoline may be held in the container sincethis amount is about the minimum that will assure getting to the nearestservice station. Smaller or larger sizes may, of course, be utilized.

A metal sheath 10, generally cylindrical in shape, and having a bottom11, is adapted to surround the bottle. The upper portion of the sheathterminates in a plurality of fingers 11 formed integrally with the wallof the sheath but nevertheless deformable along the line 11a where thefingers join the wall of the sheath. The sheath 10 is formed of sheetmetal of such strength as to resist puncture or bending in ordinaryusage; the material of the thickness commonly used for forming heavycans and pails is suitable.

The fingers 11 are so dimensioned that when they lie in the same planeas the sides of the can 10 there is a space 12 between them. Thispermits the fingers to be bent towards the center, as is shown in FIGURE3, diminishing the space 12 between the individual fingers 11.

In assembling the apparatus, the sheath 10 is formed with the fingersextending in a vertical upright position and the rubber bottle 1 is thendropped into the sheath. The fingers are then bent inwardly so as tofollow generally the contour of the conical portion 3 of the bottle andthe fingers act to retain the rubber bottle within the sheath.

The dimensions of the bottle and the sheath are critical and the outervolume occupied by the bottle 1 when filled must be not more than of thevolume occupied by the interior volume of the sheath 10. In other words,there is a 10% free space between the rubber bottle and the metalsheath. This is essential in order to permit expansion. If the rubberbottle has a volume of approximately one gallon and is filled withgasoline at ambient temperatures, it will expand no more than 10%throughout the normal temperature range to which the container is apt tobe subjected in all foreseeable normal usages.

Thus, if the car is sitting in the sun in the desert, and thetemperature rises within the trunk of the car where the container may bekept, for example, the gasoline and the vapors will expand and therubber being flexible and elastic will similarly expand but the volumeof the rubber bottle will not more than fill the volume of the metalsheath.

In the structure shown, the rubber will be protected against punctureand there will be no possibility of breathing or rupture to emitdangerous or explosive gasoline fumes.

In the event that the temperature would exceed all normal temperaturesto which the container may be subjected so that the rubber bottleexpands more than the 10% permitted by the volume of the sheath, thefingers 11 are bent along the line 11a have sufiicient flexibility sothat they will be pushed outwardly by any additional expansion, and inthis Way, the possibility of rupture avoided even though the containeris subjected to abnormal temperatures.

I am aware that it has been proposed heretofore to line containers witha flexible bag-like material, such as, for example, as shown in PatentNo. 2,338,604. However, in such proposals, there is no recognition ofthe need to provide for the expansion of gasoline which is attained bycritical dimensions between the container and the bag that is containedtherein, nor the need to provide for further expansion should thetemperature cause expansion beyond the limits provided for by saidcritical dimensions.

I believe my invention will be a great boon to motorists who can drivewith confidence and without anxiety about running out of gas and willeliminate all hazards that have heretofore been attendant to thecarrying of an emergency supply of gasoline in the car, particularly thethe trunk thereof.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A container for an emergency supply of gasoline adapted to be carriedin a car, comprising a bottle having sides and a bottom and a smallerupper neck portion integral thereof, said bottle being formed of arubber material insoluble in gasoline, a sealing cap, and means forsecuring said cap to the neck portion whereby the rubber bottle may behermetically sealed; a rigid sheath for said rubber bottle to protectsaid bottle against puncture during usage, the internal volume of saidsheath being at least greater than the external volume of said bottlewhen filled whereby the contents of said bottle may expand as much as10% Within said sheath without causing rupture thereof, and'readilyflexible retaining means at the neck end of said sheath for retainingsaid bottle therein whereby said retaining means may flex and preventrupture of the sheath in the event that the bottle expands more than the10% permitted by the sheath.

2. A container as recited in claim 1 wherein said flexible retainingmeans includes a plurality of spring fingers provided on said r-igidsheath.

3. A container for an emergency supply of gasoline adapted to he carriedin a car, and comprising a bottle having a side wall, a bottom end wall,and a top end wall united with said side Wall, said top end wallincluding a smaller neck portion integral therewith, said bottle beingconstructed from a rubber-like material insoluble in gasoline, a cap,means for hermetically sealing said cap to said neck portion, a rigidsheath enveloping the major portion of said bottle to protect the sameagainst puncture during usage, said sheath being provided with aplurality of spring fingers overlying said top end wall closely adjacentthereto, the internal volume of said sheath being sufficiently greaterthan the external volume of said bottle to accommodate enlargement ofsaid bottle due to expansion over normal temperature ranges of any 4gasoline contained therein.

4. A container for volatile liquid comprising receptacle means ofvariable volume to accommodate varying pressures caused by varyingtemperatures of a volatile liquid stored therein, opening meanscommunicating in fluidconducting relation with said receptacle means forfilling and unfilling the receptacle means with said volatile liquid,hermetic sealing means releasably engaging said opening means to therebyseal said volatile liquid in said receptacle means, sheath meansprotecting the receptacle means from rupture and permitting and limitingincreases in volume of a first portion of the receptacle means to apredetermined amount, and yieldable means in connection with said sheathmeans permitting further increases in volume of a second portion of thereceptacle means if the pressure within the receptacle means increasesafter the volume of said first portion reaches said predeterminedamount.

5. The combination of claim 4 in which the predetermined amount is atleast 10% greater than the volume of the first portion when thereceptacle means is filled.

6. A container for an emergency supply of gasoline adapted to be carriedin a car, and comprising an elongated rubber bottle insoluble ingasoline and of variable volume to accommodate varying pressures causedby varying temperatures of the gasoline stored therein, an externallythreaded neck portion integral with the bottle and projecting from oneend thereof in fluid conducting relation with the inside of the bottleto facilitate filling and unfilling the bottle with gasoline, aninternally threaded cap for threaded engagement With the threads of theneck portion to hermetically seal the gasoline in the bottle, a metalsheath substantially surrounding a major portion of the bottle on theend opposite said cap to protect the rubber bottle from inadvertentrupture and dimensioned to permit and limit expansion of said majorportion of the bottle to a predetermined amount greater than 10% of thevolume of the portion when filled, integral yieldable fingers projectingfrom the metal sheath in the direction of the cap permitting furtherexpansion of a second minor portion of the bottle adjacent the cap itthe pressure within the bottle increases after the volume of the majorportion of the bottle reaches said predetermined amount.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSWilliams Apr. 10, 1956

